Most of today's commercially available personal watercraft have a hull and a deck disposed thereon. The deck has a pedestal onto which a straddle-type seat is disposed for supporting one or more passengers.
In designing a personal watercraft, many features must be provided in a relatively small space. As such, there is typically very little storage space provided for storing objects such as safety or emergency equipment or the possessions of the passengers. One of the only spaces where additional storage could be located is at the rear portion of the watercraft.
However, it is normally desired to use the rear portion of the watercraft for other purposes. For example, the rear portion may serve as a platform on which riders may step for boarding the watercraft from land. The rear platform may also be used to board the watercraft from the water, for example if the rear of the watercraft is equipped with a ladder and/or grab handles for this purpose. The rider may desire to sit, kneel or stand on the rear platform while boarding the watercraft or at any other time. The weight of the rider on the rear platform may cause the rear platform to be at least partially submerged in the body of water, resulting in discomfort. The rear portion of the watercraft may also allow water that collects in the foot wells to exit the watercraft by flowing over the transom.
In addition, personal watercraft may be used for towing a person on water skis, a wakeboard or the like. When the watercraft is used in this manner, it is common for a passenger of the watercraft to sit at the rear portion of the watercraft, facing rearwardly, to act as a spotter for the person being towed. In this position, the spotter is turned to face the person being towed, and he may desire to rest his feet on the rear portion of the watercraft. When a passenger is seated in this position, his feet may be in the path of water draining from the watercraft, resulting in discomfort.
The provision of storage at the rear of the watercraft detracts from these other purposes, particularly if the height of the rear portion of the watercraft is increased to allow for a desired volume of storage space. In addition, some mechanism must be provided to gain access to the stored articles when desired and seal the storage space against water entry or loss of items when it is not being accessed, and this may interfere with the use of the rear of the watercraft for other purposes.
Therefore, there is a need for a personal watercraft having storage space on the rear portion thereof, without detracting from other uses of the rear portion of the watercraft.